To Design or Not to Design (Part Two): The There Is a Problem with the Word 'Problem;' How Unique Vocabulary Is Essential to Conceptual Planning

摘要

FM5-0 Chapter 3 Design discusses a critical component to conceptual planning and phrases it with 'solving the right problem.' 2 However, military doctrine and institutional culture already employ the word problem for an entirely different and valid reason. Should one ask any tactical-level member of a military unit what their understanding of the word problem is in a military setting, the majority will explain to you that a problem is 'something one solves.' 3 The existing word meaning uses a short-term or tactical perspective that is divorced from the larger context in which design theory provides understanding on metaphysical processes. These processes exceed the artificial boundaries imposed by the military institution's valid definition of a tactical problem; the perspectives do not match.